no more nickels

Earlier this week Canada announced that they would be phasing out their penny coin. On the heels of the Canadian announcement, U.S. Treasury Secretary, Tim Giethner stated in a press conference today that the U.S. Mint will remove the penny and nickel coins from circulation, starting early in January 2013.Due to the rising costs of zinc and production related expenses, the U.S. Mint now spends 4.8 cents to make a penny. And the cost of copper and nickel have inflated the cost to create a nickel coin to 16.2 cents.

Gone in 2013

In 2011, the U.S. mint made over 4.9 billion pennies, at a cost of $118 million to make. That is $236 million to produce only $49 million worth of pennies, a loss of $187 million in minting costs. Minting the nickel coin also represents a significant loss in revenue.By comparison, the dime (which costs 9.2 cents to mint) and the quarter (21.31 cents) are economically more feasible, and will continue in circulation through 2013. However, according to Giethner, the dime may be in jeopardy as early as 2014.Once the phase out of pennies and nickels begins, merchants must be equipped to round all transactions to the nearest ten-cent increment.If something costs $1.53, for instance, it will be rounded down to $1.50, and a transaction for $1.55 or higher will be rounded up to $1.60. Credit card, debit and check payments would also be subject to the rounding rule. It is expected that the rounding will not result in higher costs for purchases or losses for merchants.Pennies and nickels will continue to hold their inherent cash value, and they can be traded in at financial institutions. Banks will then return the coins to the mint for recycling into their base materials. By mid 2013 it is expected that the penny and nickel will both be mostly removed from the U.S. economy

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Pennies and nickels will continue to hold their inherent cash value, and they can be traded in at financial institutions. Banks will then return the coins to the mint for recycling into their base materials. By mid 2013 it is expected that the penny and nickel will both be mostly removed from the U.S. economy

So if I go to the bank with 5 pennies, they will round up and give me a dime in exchange?

Once the phase out of pennies and nickels begins, merchants must be equipped to round all transactions to the nearest ten-cent increment.If something costs $1.53, for instance, it will be rounded down to $1.50, and a transaction for $1.55 or higher will be rounded up to $1.60. Credit card, debit and check payments would also be subject to the rounding rule. It is expected that the rounding will not result in higher costs for purchases or losses for merchants.

ROTGLMAO!

More like: All prices will forever be between $x.x5 and $x.x9 in the future.

Originally Posted by opal

Pennies and nickels will continue to hold their inherent cash value, and they can be traded in at financial institutions. Banks will then return the coins to the mint for recycling into their base materials. By mid 2013 it is expected that the penny and nickel will both be mostly removed from the U.S. economy

This sounds like it's going to be a MAJOR CASH COW for the banks and the fed gvmt.

Thanks primarily to rising costs of zinc – the main material in a penny – the U.S. Mint now spends 2.4 cents to make a penny.

Just last year, the U.S. mint made 4.9 billion pennies. It doesn’t add up: That’s $118 million to make just $49 million worth of pennies.

No wonder Canadian government announced this week that they doing away with the Canadian penny.

But here in America, the penny doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.

It’s not that powerful people have tried to nix the penny.

Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson tried to eliminate it in 2008.

The current Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner told Congress earlier this week that something has to be done about the sky-rocketing costs of making U.S. coins. And it’s not just the penny: the lowly nickel costs 11.18 cents to make.

“Currently, the costs of making the penny and the nickel are more than twice the face value of each of those coins,” Geithner said in his remarks.

By comparison, the dime (which costs 5.65 cents to mint) and the quarter (11.14 cents) are relative bargains.

The U.S. Mint, at the request of Congress, will soon make recommendations on reducing the cost of making coins.

I cannot find any other sources to support the claim of the original post.

Last edited by Zippyjuan; 11-28-2012 at 12:13 PM.

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I cannot find any other sources to support the claim of the original post.

Neither could I.

It may be a while before this happens, but it will happen. They've devalued the currency too much. I don't expect them to scrap them entirely, though. I expect them to make em cheaper. Steel perhaps. Here's an interesting article from earlier this year. http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/...th-1-cent.html

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Earlier this week Canada announced that they would be phasing out their penny coin. On the heels of the Canadian announcement, U.S. Treasury Secretary, Tim Giethner stated in a press conference today that the U.S. Mint will remove the penny and nickel coins from circulation, starting early in January 2013.Due to the rising costs of zinc and production related expenses, the U.S. Mint now spends 4.8 cents to make a penny. And the cost of copper and nickel have inflated the cost to create a nickel coin to 16.2 cents.

Gone in 2013

In 2011, the U.S. mint made over 4.9 billion pennies, at a cost of $118 million to make. That is $236 million to produce only $49 million worth of pennies, a loss of $187 million in minting costs. Minting the nickel coin also represents a significant loss in revenue.By comparison, the dime (which costs 9.2 cents to mint) and the quarter (21.31 cents) are economically more feasible, and will continue in circulation through 2013. However, according to Giethner, the dime may be in jeopardy as early as 2014.Once the phase out of pennies and nickels begins, merchants must be equipped to round all transactions to the nearest ten-cent increment.If something costs $1.53, for instance, it will be rounded down to $1.50, and a transaction for $1.55 or higher will be rounded up to $1.60. Credit card, debit and check payments would also be subject to the rounding rule. It is expected that the rounding will not result in higher costs for purchases or losses for merchants.Pennies and nickels will continue to hold their inherent cash value, and they can be traded in at financial institutions. Banks will then return the coins to the mint for recycling into their base materials. By mid 2013 it is expected that the penny and nickel will both be mostly removed from the U.S. economy

uh why...digital nickels and pennies still cost the same??

bogus

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That the coins are more expensive to make than their face value shouldn't be a big issue - physical currency is a tiny percentage of the overall money supply, and pennies and nickels are an even tinier percentage. The only way this makes sense is if people are actually melting down minted coins to make a profit by selling the metal.

Oligarchy delenda est

“If you love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.” - Samuel Adams

Increasing demand for copper and zinc has forced Treasury secretary Geithner to propose the use of steel alloy to replace the more expensive metals. This change requires congressional approval, but it doesn't address the diminishing use of the penny due to decades of inflation. Perhaps the government should consider abolishing the penny altogether.

Tim Giethner stated in a press conference today that the U.S. Mint will remove the penny and nickel coins from circulation, starting early in January 2013.

Taken out of context, I expect. To be replaced with non-zinc copper alloy.

Originally Posted by LibForestPaul

It will be made of cheap aluminum soon.

My bet is steel alloy; stainless.

I'm droppingHOAX on this

cite me wrong...

Last edited by presence; 11-29-2012 at 07:20 AM.

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However, the PEF funding model for circulating operations currently faces a risk because of the rising cost of metal. Increasing metal prices have driven production costs to exceed the face value of one-cent coins (pennies) and 5-cent coins (nickels) since FY 2006. Positive seigniorage from minting and issuing higher denominations has fully offset the losses the Mint incurs from minting and issuing pennies and nickels. Consequently, overall positive seigniorage from the circulating coin program has become highly dependent on the production of higher denominations, but increases in metal prices have dramatically reduced the seigniorage accrued from these higher denomination coins as well. To address the effect of rising metal prices on the financial viability of the circulating coin program, the Mint is conducting research and development (R&D) on potential new metallic coinage materials, pursuant to the Coin Modernization, Oversight, and Continuity Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-302). From this R&D effort, the Mint must issue biennial reports to Congress, analyzing production costs for each circulating coin, cost trends for such production, and possible new metallic materials or technologies for the production of circulating coins. These reports also must include detailed recommendations for any appropriate changes to the metallic content of circulating coins in such a form that the recommendations could be enacted into law as appropriate, as well as recommendations for changes in the methods of producing coins that would further reduce the costs to produce circulating coins. Notes on the legislative changes that are necessary to achieve such goals must also be included. The first biennial R&D report is due to Congress in December 2012.
Circulating
Based on current economic data and assuming a steady economic recovery, circulating coin demand is anticipated to grow over each of the next three fiscal years. In FY 2011, circulating coin shipment volumes increased to 7.4 billion from 5.4 billion in FY 2010, and seigniorage increased by 16.0 percent. Revenue growth in FY 2011 was due to increased shipments of all denominations. In FY 2012, increases predominantly in lower denomination coin shipments are projected. However, the Mint expects the Federal Reserve will order significantly more quarters in FY 2012 to fulfill both collector and transactional demand. The Mint expects to continue to mint and issue the penny and nickel at costs above their face values.

Circulating coin production for FY 2013 is forecasted at 8.4 billion coins—approximately a 9 percent increase over the FY 2012 projection and a 14 percent increase over FY 2011 production. Penny, nickel and dime coin shipments are expected to increase eight to 11 percent in FY 2013 from FY 2012 as coin demand steadily improves. Anticipated quarter-dollar coin shipments reflect a 27 percent increase in demand, the largest projected increase for FY 2013 among the coin denominations.

...

Coinage Materials Modernization Act (CMMA)
The recently passed Coin Modernization, Oversight and Continuity Act (Act) (CMOCA) (Public Law 111-302) provides the Secretary R&D authority; it does not give the Secretary the flexibility and agility to approve coinage materials that would result in significant long- and short-term savings to the taxpayers. Requiring legislation for each change in coin composition will greatly slow the process. As metal prices are extremely volatile, the delay incurred by proposing and passing legislation could result in the new compositions being outdated by the time of their enactment.
Increasing metal prices have driven production costs to exceed the face value of one-cent coins (pennies) and 5-cent coins (nickels) since FY 2006, and have deteriorated the returns realized from other circulating coinage. Should the total cost of producing coins ever exceed their face value (thereby reducing seigniorage) the United States Mint has reserved $248.8 million in its PEF to pay for capital expenditures and unplanned expenses. Although unlikely, if results are worse than expected and the United States Mint is required to exhaust the $248.8 million in its PEF, the United States Mint could eventually require an appropriation or borrowing authority to fund circulating operations.
The Mint is proposing legislative changes that would modernize the nation’s coinage materials for the first time since 1965. Specifically, these changes would amend 31 U.S.C. § 5112(a)-(c) to grant the Secretary the same authority he presently possesses with respect to the $1 coin—that is, the authority to prescribe the weights and compositions of all circulating coins, and to provide the Secretary flexibility to change the composition of coins to more cost-effective materials.
The proposed amendments would allow the Secretary to explore, analyze, and approve new, less expensive materials for all circulating coins based on factors that he determines to be appropriate. Such factors may include physical, chemical, metallurgical and technical characteristics; material, fabrication, minting, and distribution costs; material availability and sources of raw materials; coinability; durability; effects on sorting, handling, packaging and vending machines; risks to the environment and public safety; appearance; resistance to counterfeiting; and commercial and public acceptance.
Sec. 122. (a) Sections 2 and 3 of Public Law 111-302 are hereby repealed.
(b) Section 5112 of Title 31, United States Code, is amended as follows:
(1) Subsection (a)(2) is amended by striking “ and weighs 11.34 grams.”
(2) Subsection (a)(3) is amended by striking “ and weighs 5.67 grams.”
(3) Subsection (a)(4) is amended by striking “ and weighs 2.268 grams.”
(4) Subsection (a)(5) is amended by striking “ and weighs 5 grams.”
(5) Subsection (a)(6) is amended by—
(A) striking “except as provided under subsection (c) of this section, ”; and
(B) striking “ and weighs 3.11 grams.”
(6) Subsection (b) is amended by striking the first, second, third, fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth sentences, and striking “metallic, ”.
(7) Subsection (c) is amended to read as follows: “The Secretary shall prescribe the weight and the composition of the dollar, half-dollar, quarter-dollar, dime, 5-cent, and one-cent coins. In prescribing the weight and the composition of the dollar, half-dollar, quarter-dollar, dime, 5-cent and one-cent coins, the Secretary shall consider such factors that the Secretary considers, in the Secretary’s sole discretion, to be appropriate.”
(c) Section 5113(a) of Title 31, United States Code, is amended by—
(1) striking “and ” and inserting after “dime” “, 5-cent, and one-cent”; and
(2) striking the second and third sentences.

I need to get involved personally when this phase out plan is programmed into the banks computer systems!

I know just what to do with those tiny fractions left over when rounding off. They won't even be missed, right?My idea for the software algorithm is to only round down (it makes me get rich and prevents inflation at the same time!).

I need to get involved personally when this phase out plan is programmed into the banks computer systems!

I know just what to do with those tiny fractions left over when rounding off. They won't even be missed, right?My idea for the software algorithm is to only round down (it makes me get rich and prevents inflation at the same time!).

I have worked on my , pre 1913 nickel collection a little bit this year. Been fooling with it since I was a kid , I have 1883 - 1974 done , except 4 nickels. I plan to just stop there , the only four I need are pricey.